Neighbors

Neighbors are the fellow people one lives among or meets. The command to love one's neighbor as oneself is given in the Law of Moses and repeated by Jesus as the second great commandment.

Love your neighbor as yourself

• Leviticus 19:18
  Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against any of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.
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• Matthew 22:37-40
  ³⁷Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.Jesus declared, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ ³⁸This is the first and great commandment.This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ⁴⁰On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
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• Mark 12:31
  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”
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• Romans 13:8-10
  ⁸Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.Be indebted to no one, except to one another in love. For he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. ⁹For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.The commandments “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and any other commandments, are summed up in this one decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁰Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.Love does no wrong to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
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• Galatians 5:14
  For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
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• James 2:8
  If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:If you really fulfill the royal law stated in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well.
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Who is my neighbor?

• Luke 10:25-37
  ²⁵And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?One day an expert in the law stood up to test Him. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ²⁶He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?“What is written in the Law?” Jesus replied. “How do you read it?” ²⁷And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” ²⁸And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.“You have answered correctly,” Jesus said. “Do this and you will live.” ²⁹But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” ³⁰And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.Jesus took up this question and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.Now by chance a priest was going down the same road, but when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. ³²And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.So too, when a Levite came to that spot and saw him, he passed by on the other side. ³³But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,But when a Samaritan on a journey came upon him, he looked at him and had compassion. ³⁴And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. ³⁵And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Take care of him,’ he said, ‘and on my return I will repay you for any additional expense.’ ³⁶Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” ³⁷And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.“The one who showed him mercy,” replied the expert in the law. Then Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
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The golden rule

• Matthew 7:12
  Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.In everything, then, do to others as you would have them do to you. For this is the essence of the Law and the Prophets.
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• Luke 6:31
  And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.Do to others as you would have them do to you.
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Doing right by a neighbor

• Exodus 20:16-17
  ¹⁶Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. ¹⁷Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, or his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
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• Proverbs 3:28-29
  ²⁸Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee.Do not tell your neighbor, “Come back tomorrow and I will provide”— when you already have the means. ²⁹Devise not evil against thy neighbour, seeing he dwelleth securely by thee.Do not devise evil against your neighbor, for he trustfully dwells beside you.
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• Zechariah 8:16-17
  ¹⁶These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another, render true and sound judgments in your gates, ¹⁷And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.do not plot evil in your hearts against your neighbor, and do not love to swear falsely, for I hate all these things,” declares the LORD.
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• Romans 15:2
  Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.
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• Proverbs 27:10
  Thine own friend, and thy father’s friend, forsake not; neither go into thy brother’s house in the day of thy calamity: for better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off.Do not forsake your friend or your father’s friend, and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.
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See also

• Love
• Kindness
• Hospitality
• Enemies
• Foreigners

Notes

1. Verses are quoted in the translation chosen in the Translation menu at the top of the page. See Translations for sources and copyright notices.
2. Each reference links to the full chapter so the verse can be read in context.